Blended Services Training Programme

Jan. 28/10 — Andrew Colgoni, Nora Gaskin, Krista Godfrey

Content

• searching a database to find articles on a topic
• using synonyms, truncation, limits, and fielded searching in Scholars Portal
• getting full text (Get it!)
• creating and revising a search strategy as necessary to retrieve an appropriate number of relevant results

Session Materials

• Presentation slides:
  • 1 slide per page (all slides, plays as a show with animations): BST #10 Intro to DB Searching
  • 2 slides per page: BST #10 Intro to DB Searching (pdf)
  • 3 slides per page: BST #10 Intro to DB Searching (pdf)
• List of topics: BST #10 Intro to DB Searching Topics for Pair Activity

Homework

• use the Research Worksheet to research a social sciences or humanities topic of your choice
• you may use any Scholar’s Portal database, or group of databases (for example, choose “Social Sciences” or “Arts & Humanities” from the dropdown menu “Change… Subject Area”) in Scholars Portal Search

Jan. 21/10 — Nora Gaskin, Krista Godfrey, Andrew Colgoni

Content

• Google Scholar, academic web, government publications on the web
• Evaluating information on the web

Session Materials & Links

• Presentation slides:
  • 1 slide per page: BST 9 Web II Scholarly & Evaluation
  • 2 slides per page: BST 9 Web II Scholarly & Evaluation 2
  • 3 slides per page: BST 9 Web II Scholarly & Evaluation 3

Homework

• BST 9 Web II Homework
• BST 9 Web II Homework Answers
• homework links:
  • Information Page web evaluation checklist (“Questions to Ask About the Web Page“) at Widener
  • websites to evaluate:
    • http://www.dhmo.org/
    • http://monsanto.co.uk/
  • Hillwatch.com
  • Berkeley Web Page Evaluation Checklist
  • Widener Advocacy Web Page evaluation checklist

Jan. 14/10 — Andrew Colgoni, Nora Gaskin, Krista Godfrey

Content

• kinds of information that can be found on the Web
• how the Web works
• Web Search Tools:
  • subject directories, general and academic
  • search engines, e.g. Google
  • specialized tools, e.g. metasearch
• web skills & knowledge
  • Google advanced search
  • domains, URLs & file types
  • search results
  • relevance ranking
• browser tips

Session Materials and Links

• Presentation slides:
  • 1 slide per page: BST 8 Web
  • 2 slides per page: BST 8 Web 2
  • 3 slides per page: BST 8 Web 3
• Handouts:
  • BST 8 Google Tips & Tricks
  • BST 8 Anatomy of a URL
• Video:
  • World Wide Web in Plain English
• Give your feedback on the session

Homework

• BST 8 Homework (Revised version)
• Online homework
  • review this 10-minute tutorial, and complete The Web Whiz Quiz at the end:  The Web-at-a-Glance / Learn the Net
  • review: Surf the Web: Top Ten Tips / Learn the Net
  • watch the 2-minute video (this is an updated url): Web Search Strategies in Plain English / Common Craft; alternate url if that one doesn’t work:  Web Search Strategies in Plain English
  • review: Learning the Web: Basics / TeachersFirst:
  • watch the slideshow: Anatomy of a Domain Name and URL / Andy Wibbels – hint: to watch the show at your own pace, use this button…to advance the slides, instead of just letting the slideshow play
• Supplementary material
  • Google Search Basics / Google
  • Google Guide – Interactive Tutorial / Nancy Blachman
  • Anatomy of a URL / Richard Farrar

Jan. 7/10 — Catherine Baird, John Fink, Nora Gaskin, Susan Shepley

Content

• finding and distinguishing between books, journal articles, book chapters
• advanced searching & using facets in the library catalogue
• recommending appropriate databases

Session Materials and Links

• Presentation slides:
  • 1 slide per page: BST #7 Review
  • 2 slides per page: BST #7 Review
  • 3 slides per page: BST #7 Review
• Handouts:
  • BST 7 Review Jigsaw Activity